GCSPF e-Newsletter # 72 – June 2022

Members of the Global Coalition participated in the 110th Session of the International Labour Conference (ILC) that was held in June.

The international networks of workers in the informal economy and WIEGO welcome the ILO Report on Decent Work and the Social and Solidarity Economy (SSE) prepared for the ILO’s 110th Session and believe that the conclusions of the general discussion on the SSE must be built on the foundation of international instruments referring to SSE units and the ILO decent work agenda. Watch the interventions
This year’s general discussion at the 110th ILC on Decent Work and the Social and Solidarity Economy should build on the principles for an inclusive definition that recognizes the crucial role of workers in informal employment, with an emphasis on supporting diverse social and solidarity economy models as key drivers of economic and social development. Read the global position paper

At the International Labour Conference, PSI has underlined that corporates that made huge profits at the expense of workers and people’s rights are to be held accountable for the multi-layer crisis we are facing.
Make-up solutions to the current economic system will be insulting for billions of working people. It is time to act decisively for a change of paradigm.
The new Director-General has a titanic task to rethink and reposition the role of the Organization and make sure it fulfils the premise that reads “Whereas universal and lasting peace can be established only if it is based upon social justice”. Read more

Key outcomes of ILO Conference. Working people around the world are set to benefit directly from the decision at the International Labour Conference (ILC) to recognise occupational health and safety as the fifth fundamental principle and right at work.
Over 3 million workers a year die because of their work and tens of millions more suffer injuries and ill health. This victory, from a sustained three-year campaign by trade unions, professionals and practitioners and victims’ families, will begin to turn that deadly tide.
It adds the right to a healthy and safe working environment to the four rights adopted in 1998 by the International Labour Organization (ILO): 1. Freedom of association and the effective recognition of the right to collective bargaining. 2. The elimination of forced or compulsory labour. 3. The abolition of child labour. 4. The elimination of discrimination in respect of employment and occupation. Read more

The Director-General told delegates that the 110th International Labour Conference had made history with its work on safety and health, apprenticeships, and labour standards, among other areas.
Describing this ILC as “important, harmonious and productive” he highlighted the decision to “lift a safe and healthy working environment to the status of a fundamental principle and right at work” as “making history”. Read more

A selection of country case studies: Bangladesh, Gabon, Honduras, Mongolia, Senegal and Somalia
This report contributes to the ongoing debates on the establishment of universal social protection through an analysis of eight specific country cases where trade unions are actively campaigning for extending social protection as part of national development strategies. This report showcases the national social protection needs of these countries, existing social protection coverage and financing gaps, as well as the existing contribution of official development assistance (ODA) towards social protection in the different countries concerned.
The cases showcase the potential for mobilising greater domestic resources for social protection as well as the importance of greater international financial support towards social protection, including strengthening the share of development assistance towards social protection to at least 7% of existing ODA allocations in the short term, as well as the potential for a Global Social Protection Fund in mobilizing and coordinating international financing to make social protection a reality for all.
The report is available in English, French and Spanish. This study was prepared by the ITUC, with financial support from WSM. Read more

By Temilade Sesan
The Nigerian government’s response to the vulnerabilities of workers in the informal sector has been slow. While progress has been made in the laying of institutional frameworks and the introduction of social protection programmes over the past decade, with coverage at just six per cent of workers in the country, these fall far short of the need.
The low levels of public investment in social protection in Nigeria reflect a general crisis of governance, one in which government priorities are informed largely by political considerations that do not align with the interests of informal workers.
The FIWON cooperative, a wholly informal worker-driven collective with chapters in Lagos and Osun, facilitates access to insurance for its members. The findings from the case study could be useful to others in contexts where public trust has been significantly eroded and government investment in social protection is low. Read more

CESR’s launched a new digital space in which they offer a powerful way for activists, campaigners, and communities around the world to use research to advance economic, environmental, and social justice.
Injustices like gender inequality, the climate crisis, racial discrimination, labor abuse, are enabled and exacerbated by economic policies. CESR’s Tools Hub offers the essentials for creating evidence that shows to what extent and by what means rights are being violated. By shedding new light on how economic policies harm people’s human rights, Decoding Injustice supports our demands for those in power to live up to their promises and right the wrongs of historic oppression. Read more

Public services as a tool to promote gender equality. 23 June 2022, 1:30 pm UTC
The escalating global environmental and inequalities crises, compounded by the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, have further exposed and exacerbated the existing gender inequalities and have added to the factors that put women’s human rights at risk.
In the face of these structural and emerging challenges, public services can play a decisive role in the transformation of the asymmetrical and unjust power relations between women and men.
Panel 1: Challenges and risks: what are the key barriers to the development of gender- transformative public services?
Panel 2: Solutions and opportunities: how would gender-transformative public services look like in practice? What are the key components of a gender-transformative agenda for public services?
The side event is co-organized by Public Services International (PSI), Global Initiative for Economic, Social and Cultural Rights and Global Alliance for Tax Justice during the 50th session of the Human Rights Council. Registrations

A position paper issued by the Jordan Labour Watch - JLW (affiliated with Phenix Center for Economic and Informatics Studies) has illustrated that there are still many gaps in occupational health and safety in Jordan.
The paper called for conducting a review of all policies regulating the occupational safety and health in the Kingdom, according to a Phenix Centre statement. The paper also emphasized the importance of occupational safety with regards to mental health for workers, and the need to guarantee minimum standards for mental health within labor laws.
The paper showed that many women in Jordan work for jobs that might jeopardise their safety, such as working in factories and the agricultural sectors, which do not provide all types of social protection to women and men. Read more

There is growing evidence that social protection is a powerful tool to promote women’s economic empowerment and that it reduces gender based violence. Depending on the design, social protection programs can either reinforce or transform stereotypical gender norms. Today, there are still far too many social protection programmes that do not take gender into account. The policy brief “Social Protection and Gender Equality” introduces social protection, describes why it is important for women and girls, refers to the Global Fund for Social Protection, and summarises the main evidence of the impact of social protection on gender equality. It ends with recommendations on how to develop gender responsive social protection systems. The policy brief was published by Act Church of Sweden and The Kvinna till Kvinna Foundation in May 2022. Read more

The report - “A Glimmer of Hope amidst the Pain” - draws on the testimonials of older women and men sharing the severe hardships they face because of the lack of an adequate social protection system in Lebanon.
HelpAge International and the International Labor Organization (ILO) partnered to feature the voices of Lebanon’s older people as they are often left without income security.
Lebanon is the fastest ageing country in the Arab region and has the highest proportion of older people. Yet, there is no inclusive social protection for older people to guarantee a dignified life in older age. The report is available in Arabic and English. Read more

The Conference “Towards Universal Social Protecton by 2030 in Eastern Africa” sets the scene by highlighting the criticality of universal social protection as an end in itself – recognized as a human right – as well as a means to unleash the social and economic prosperity of nations, as also implicit in the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.
We will then explore the link between the global agenda and national efforts, discussing questions such as: What are common challenges to extending universal social protection in countries in Eastern Africa? To what extent can countries, within and beyond the region, learn from each other? And what is the role of an international partnership such as USP2030 in this respect?
14 JUNE 2022 from 14:00 to 16.00 EAT (UTC +3) - You can register here. Read more

By Shahra Razavi, Christina Behrendt, Valeria Nesterenko, Ian Orton, Celine Peyron Bista, Alvaro Ramos Chavez, Helmut Schwarzer, Maya Stern-Plaza and Veronika Wodsak | International Labour Organization (ILO)
The recently released World Bank publication, Revisiting Targeting, provides an excellent opportunity to explore some of the key policy issues. This comes at a time when the COVID-19 pandemic and other unfolding crises have made the case for universal social protection more compelling than ever before, putting the spotlight on the need to identify financing options for extending social protection, and in so doing help re-build the social contract. Read more

Amman-Jordan, Arab Renaissance for Democracy and Development (ARDD) is a Jordanian NGO founded in 2008. Our programs aim to mobilize the untapped potential of our societies in the Arab region and outside to contribute positively to their journey towards the renaissance, by encouraging dialogue, research, education, training, youth empowerment, gender justice, social and economic development, in addition to the provision of relief, social protection services and direct legal assistance.
Working towards a renewed Renaissance in the Arab world finds its foundation in the values of AlNahda. Since appearing during AlNahda, the legacy of pluralism, intellectual curiosity, and humanism has been overshadowed by regional conflict, yet ARDD prioritizes these trends as the roots of democracy and development. These values are the building stone in all our programs: Gender Justice; Youth Enablemente and Education; Social Peace and Cohesion; Governance; Legal Aid and Justice Sector Development; Right to Information and Freedom of Speech; Forced Migration, Refugees & Shataat; Human & Economic Development; Relief and Recovery.
Contact: Mar Logrono, Ph.D., Senior Advisor Access to Justice and Inclusive Social Protection Read more

Veille Citoyenne Togo is an association created in September 2019, and declared and registered in Togo since 2020 and intervenes in the field of citizen control of public action through: the citizen watch by promoting transparency of the budgetary process both at the national and local levels; citizen control of the transparency of public contracts and delegations of public services; citizen control of the efficiency of public spending; the fight against corruption and impunity; the denunciation of cases of misappropriation and mismanagement of public resources; the constitution of a file to be a civil party in economic crimes; monitoring the implementation of the Integrated Monitoring and Evaluation Policy (PISE); and advocacy and lobbying for Togo's membership in the Open Government Partnership and the promotion of Open Data and Open Contracts.
Contact: Pidenam SAMA, President/Executive Director Read more